GA n. 2018-2-CY02-KA347-001291 Transnational Youth Forum on the Right to Education : Building a brighter future for the Children on the Move

Education and training are among the most powerful tools for integration. Language knowledge, the acquisition of basic skills and an understanding of the laws, culture and values of the receiving society is the foundation for further learning and the gateway to employment and social inclusion. Equipping educators with the necessary skills to prevent educational segregation and to harness education as a fundamental tool for the integration of families and children from third countries is also a pillar of social inclusion. Education prepares people to participate better in all areas of daily life and to interact with others. Consequently, education not only has positive effects for the individual, but also for the society as a whole. Educational arrears are easily transmitted from one generation to the next. Therefore, it is essential that special attention is given to the educational achievement of those who face difficulties within the school system. Given the critical role played by education in the integration of those who are new in a society – and especially for women and children – scholastic underachievement, early school-leaving and of all forms of migrant youth delinquency should be avoided and made priority areas for policy intervention. Since the signature of Treaty of Lisbon in 2007, the EU has nonetheless periodically set priorities and goals to drive policies, legislative proposals and funding opportunities to integration. The Europe 2020 Strategy, where one of the headline targets is to raise the employment rate of 20 to 64-year olds in the EU to 75 %. One of the means by which to do this is by better integrating. One of the key elements of better integration is education. Education and Training 2020 program aims to reach better integration through language courses, cultural studies, lifelong learning and inclusive debates. Integration Action Plan of Third-Country Nationals, which was launched on the summer of 2016, also highlights the importance of education in integration. The Action Plan promotes language training, participation of migrant children to Early Childhood Education and Care, teacher training and civic education. The project Transnational Youth Forum on the Rights of the Child: The Right to Education & Children on the move fits perfectly to the analogy of the EU policy regarding Education and Integration.